Eating Disorders

Eating disorders are NOT a diet gone wrong. They are a complex set of symptoms that interfere with a person’s ability to live healthfully. Anorexia, Bulimia, Binge Eating Disorders (BED) and Food Addiction are marked by obsessive thoughts and compulsive behavior regarding food, weight, body shape and size. Symptoms of an eating disorder include but are not limited to restriction, binging, purging, overeating, compulsive eating, over exercise, diet pills, diuretics, and laxative abuse. A person with an eating disorder will often have unrealistic, self-critical thoughts about their body and the idea of perfection. It is a pervasive illness that affects one’s ability to function interpersonally, psychologically, and medically. One will often engage in eating disorder symptoms to give a sense of control or mastery over one’s body and food when life otherwise feels out of control.

Services Provided:

• Individual therapy
• Group therapy
• Nutrition therapy

Statistics:

• 10-15% of those who have Anorexia and Bulimia are male
• 25% of college-age women engage in binging and purging behavior
• 95% of those who suffer from an eating disorder are between the ages of 12-25 years old
• Among gay men, nearly 14% suffer from Bulimia and over 20% from Anorexia
• A person with an eating disorder is four times more likely to suffer from a co-occurring substance abuse disorder than the general population
• At least 30 million people of all ages and genders suffer from an eating disorder in the U.S.
• Eating disorders affect all races and ethnic groups
• Eating disorders have the highest morality rate of any mental illness
• Elite athletes have a significantly higher rate (20%) of eating disorders due to high expectations of self and competitiveness
• Men are less likely to seek treatment because the perception is that it is a “women’s disease”